Stelis levicula Luer 2007 SECTION Stelis

TYPE Drawing by Carl Luer

Common Name or Meaning The Worthless Stelis

Flower Size .12" [3 mm]

Found in Morona-Santiago province of Ecuador in forest remnant at elevations around 1550 meters as a mini-miniature sized, cool growing, caespitose epiphyte with slender, erect ramicauls enveloped by 2 ribbed tubular sheaths and carrying a single, coriaceous, narrowly elliptical, subacute, cuneate below into the slender petiolate base leaf that blooms in the summer on an erect, peduncle .08" [2 cm] long, arising through an annulus from below the apex of the ramicaul, rachis 1.6" [4 cm] long, lax, distichous, subflexuous, simultaneously 2 to 3 flowered inflorescence with the oblique acute, longer than the pedicel floral bracts and carrying flowers with dull, light grey brown sepals, dull white petals and a dull white lip.

"AN odd feature is that the dorsal sepals of flowers of the same plant can either have 5 or 7 veins. The outer veins are sometimes absent, sometimes incomplete and sometimes complete. A few, small, pale flowers are produced simultaneously in a looosesuccessivly flowered raceme from a hair-like rachis. The sepals are ovate and glabrous. The lunate petals have a thick margin and a transverse callus and the lip is obtuse awitha proportionally large, rounded callis on the dorsum." Luer 2007

Synonyms

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ;

* cones Pleurothallidinarum XXIX A Third Century of Stelis of Ecuadort Luer 2007

Icones Pleurothallidinarum XXIX A Third Century of Stelis of Ecuadort Luer 2007 Drawing fide

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